High-volume commercial dishwashing industries tend to implement conveyor dishwashers to actively move dishware along an assembly line cleaning system. This type of cleaning system may include various cleaning zones, such as a pre-wash zone, a main wash zone, and a final rinse zone. Each zone is arranged downstream of the previous zone, and dishware is transported in a single direction through the system to encounter each dishwashing zone in a desired order.
Conveyor dishwashers typically include a conveyor belt to accommodate dishware directly, or to move dishware retained in racks through a cleaning cycle. The conveyor belt moves the dishware through successive zones and is provided with a tank that holds liquid to be sprayed in its respective zone. Since dishware is conveyed in one direction through each zone, however, it is not uncommon for spatter from liquid and debris from one zone to contaminate the next zone.
The nature of a conveyor dishwasher also requires a large footprint as dishes are moved through the cleaning process in series. Dirty dishes enter a first cleaning zone (such as a pre-wash zone), advance through successive cleaning zones (such as a main wash zone), and then finally emerge as clean dishes from a final cleaning zone (such as a final rinse zone) located a significant distance from the first cleaning zone in traditional systems. In addition, access to the surface of a dish in a conveyor dishwasher may be impeded by non-optimal orientation and packing of dishes. Neighboring dishes may obscure access to certain areas of the dish, thereby preventing effective cleaning.
Accordingly, what are needed are systems and methods to prevent contamination from liquid and debris spatter between successive dishwashing zones and to reduce the footprint traditionally associated with conveyor dishwashers. Also what are needed are systems and methods to optimally position and securely retain dishware during cleaning, thereby increasing dishwashing efficiencies and throughput by ensuring effective access to the dish surfaces. Finally what is needed are systems and methods to allow dishwashing stages or zones to operate in parallel, such that dirty dishes enter the system and clean dishes exit the system substantially simultaneously. Such systems and methods are disclosed and claimed herein.